Container agitating and sterilizing apparatus



A. LL,KRONQUEST 2,052,096

CONTAINER AGITATING AND STERILIZING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 H J 3 9 J0 mi /MMWA$ Aug. 25, 1936. A. KRONQUEST 2,052,096

CONTAINER AGITATING AND STERILIZING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 2 5, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFIE CONTAINER AGITATING AND STERILIZING APPARATUS Application July 28, 1934, Serial No. 737,465

8 Claims.

This invention relates to container agitating and sterilizing apparatus of the type which is utilized for processing containers such as cans after they have been filled and sealed.

It has heretofore been proposed tOi construct such devices in various manners, but difliculties have existed in devising such apparatus for receiving cans of different sizes, and in the construction of the apparatus for easy loading and unloading. 7

One of the features of the present invention, therefore, is the provision of an apparatus of the type described in which the containers are placed in and removed from the apparatus while assembled in crates.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of crate structures for such an apparatus, in which a minimum of parts are provided, and these parts are of simple construction and cheap to manufacture and are, so far as possible, duplicates of one another.

A further feature of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of the type described in which the container-supporting structures automatically adjust themselves according to the particular sizes of containers being employed.

Still another feature of the present invention is the provision of a holding crate structure for an apparatus of the type described in which the crates are filled and clamped prior to assembly in the apparatus, are fixedly secured in the apparatus for the agitating movements therein, and may be removed from the apparatus as units and taken apart for the withdrawal of the containers therefrom.

A still further feature of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of the type described in which the container-supporting structures are guided for movement along a fixed axis, by means of a structure which is connected to the driving system, but may be removed from such structure and withdrawn from the apparatus without separating the parts of such structure within the ap a us With these and other objects in view, as will appear in the course of the following specification and claims, 'an illustrative form of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the apparatus, with parts broken away to show the internal arrangement of the sterilizing drum and its parts;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic sectional view through a container-holding crate, on a larger scale;

Fig. 3 is a corresponding end view with parts broken away to show the relationship of elements.

In Fig. 1, the apparatus comprises a base B having thereon a suitable driving system S for reciprocating the containers as a means of agitating their contents, being provided for this pur- 5 pose with a reciprocating rod Ii].

Likewise mounted on the base is a sterilizing drum comprising a peripheral wall l I, an end wall i2 fixed thereto, and a removable closing cover it. It is usual to construct the drum with the Wall ll of cylindrical form as presenting a maximum strength of resistance against internal pressures and to arrange it with the axis substantially horizontal for easy access.

The end wall i2 is provided with a hollow guide member I l which is concentric with the drum wall it and is provided at its free end with a guide it: for the rod it, which passes through the guide member i4 and is provided with a packing 56 adjacent the wall 12.

A reciprocating member 2E3 in the form of a sleeve is guidedly supported by the guide member i i and is slidable therealong. Thissleeve 20 is provided with an end wall 2! which receives the projecting end of rod l0 and is secured thereto by the nuts 22. The other end of the sleeve 20 is provided with a peripheral flange 23 which extends outwardly for receiving the individual crate members which support the containers.

In Fig. 1, two of these crate members are shown as assembled upon the sleeve 20. Each of the crate members comprises a central sleeve portion 30 having a peripherally extending flange 3| at one end and external screw threads at the other end. An end member 32 has a radially extending wall and a central flange 33 which closely engages the external wall of the sleeve 30. The ribs 36 are provided for strengthening the end member 32. It is preferred to form these end members of castings and to provide them with eyes 35 which serve for lifting the crate when assembled.

Each of the crates also comprises a plurality of trays 36 which may be formed of sheet metal with cylindrical peripheral flanges 31 which are of lesser height than the height of the containers to be processed. Each tray also has a radial wall 38 which is engaged with ends of containers to be processed, and also has, in this illustrated form, an inner flange 39 which closely 5 engages the external wall of the sleeve 3|].

. Further, each crate includes a second end member 32 which is illustrated as identical with the first end member.

In assembling the containers in a crate, the

sleeve 30 is placed upon a support in the position shown in Fig. 2, with the lower end 32 in position. The first tray 36 is then placed thereon, and this tray is loaded with containers. A second tray 36 is then placed, and loaded in turn, and so on, until the proper number of trays and containers have been positioned according to the length of the sleeve 39. A tray 36 may then be reversed and placed upon the upper ends of the last group of containers. The top end 32 is then placed in position and the nuts 40 screwed down upon the sleeve 30 to hold the parts against disengagement and to clamp the containers in position. This completes the assembly of a crate with its load of containers. This operation can be performed with one group of crates, while another group is within the drum undergoing agitation and sterilization.

When the empty drum is to be loaded, and its cover I3 is open, the proper number of crates (here two) are held in readiness and are individually lifted, as by a hoist engaged with the eyes 35; and swung in a position and. slid upon the reciprocating sleeve member 20, in succession, and then the clamping nuts are threaded upon the end of sleeve 20 to hold the crates tightly together and against the flange 23. The cover i3 is then closed and sealed.

The driving system S is then set in operation and steam may be admitted through an inlet until the desired pressure is obtained. It is possible to admit water to fill a container, if desired, through the connection 5| while air is vented therefrom through pipe 52. This water may be admitted prior to placing the apparatus under pressure, and then the pipes 52 and 53 may be employed as overflows for assuring a proper filling of water. A thermometer 54 and a pressure gauge 55 are included on the apparatus for indicating its functioning. A safety valve 56 may be included to prevent accident or excess of pressure.

The steam through inlet 50 raises the temperature of the contents of the drum to the desired degree, while the driving system S moves the reciprocating structure and thus the containers back and forth rapidly, thus causing an agitation and intermingling of the contents in each individual container, and assuring a rapid and adequate sterilization and/or processing thereof.

When the processing has continued for the desired length of time, the admission of steam is shut off, and cooling water may be admitted through the water connect-ion 5| and permitted to flow out through the overflows 52 and 53 while the driving system S continues in movement to prevent any deterioration of the contents of the containers by an excessive time of heating.

During the heating and cooling phases, the trays of the crates operate as baffles, and serve to cause a proper flow of the heating or cooling medium into contact with the walls of all containers.

When the operation is terminated, the cover [3 is released, after drainage of water through the drain outlet 51, for example. and the nuts 45 are removed. The crates may then be pulled outwardly individually, and their eyes 35 engaged by the hoist for removal of the crates to an unloading stand where they may be again positioned as in Fig. 2, the nuts 40 released, and the upper end 32 removed, and then the trays and containers are withdrawn in succession.

It is obvious that the invention is not limited solely to the form of construction shown, but that it may be employed in many ways within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a housing and an end closure therefor, a central support member having a free end adjacent the end closure, a reciprocable member surrounding and guided by the support member, a driving element connected to said reciprocable member and extending through said support member, and removable annular members surrounding and secured on said reciprocable member for holding containers.

2. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a housing and an end closure therefor, a central support member having a free end adjacent the end closure, a reciprocable member surrounding and guided by the support member, a driving element connected to said reciprocable member and extending through said support member, and removable annular members surrounding and secured on said reciprocable member for holding containers, in which said reciprocable member has releasable means located adjacent the free end of the support member and a flange at its other end for engaging said removable annular members and causing the same to move with the reciprocable member.

3. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a drum having a closed end and a peripheral wall, a releasable cover for closing the open end of the drum, a central hollow support member connected to said closed end and extending in said drum toward the open end thereof, a reciprocable rod extending axially through said hollow support member, guide and packing means for said rod, a reciprocable member axially slidable on said support member and having an end portion adjacent said cover and secured to said rod, a flange on the inner end of said reciprocable member, removable sleeve means surrounding said reciprocable member and abutting said flange, releasable securing means on said reciprocable member cooperating with said flange for preventing axial movement of said sleeve means, and container-holding devices on said sleeve means removable in unit form with the sleeve means.

4. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a housing having a charging opening, a closure for said opening, a central support member extending from a pointadjacent said opening to the opposite wall of the housing and connected for support thereby, a reciprocable member surrounding and guided by said support member, a driving element extending through the support member and connected with the reciprocable member between said point and the closure and operating for moving said reciprocable member, and removable means for holding containers, said means being apertured to surround said reciprocable member and secured thereto.

5. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a horizontal cylindrical housing having an end charging opening, a closure for said opening, a horizontal central support member ex tending along the axis of the housing from a wall of said housing and having a free end at a point adjacent the closure when in closed position, a reciprocating member surrounding and guided by said support member, a driving element for moving said reciprocating member, and

removable means for holding containers surrounding and secured to said reciprocating member including spaced annular container-receiving members surrounding the reciprocating member and means for holding said annular members against movement relative to said reciprocating member.

6. A crate for holding containers comprising a sleeve having a flange at one end and an external thread at the other end, a pair of identical end members, a plurality of separable trays surrounding the sleeve and each having a peripheral flange of lesser height than the containers to be received therein, and clamping nut means engaged with said thread.

7. A crate for holding containers comprising a central portion having a flange at one end, a plurality of separable trays each having a peripheral flange structure of lesser height than the containers tobe received therein, and a clamping means on the other end of said central portion for holding the trays and containers tightly together.

8. A processing apparatus for containers comprising a housing and an end closure therefor, a central support member having a free end adjacent the end closure, a reciprocable member surrounding and guided by the, support member, a driving element connected to said reciprocable member and extending through said support member, a removable sleeve surrounding said reciprocable member and having a flange at one end, means for securing said sleeve for movement with the reciprocable member, an end member surroundin said sleeve and abutting said flange, a plurality of trays surrounding said sleeve and each having a peripheral flange of lesser height than the containers to be held thereby, a second end member, and clamping means on the sleeve cooperative with the flange to hold the end members, trays and containers in position. 20

ALFRED L. KRONQUEST. 

